Crime is a huge issue in America, a lot larger than what
many of us may realize. Only a small
handful of crimes actually get reported.
Some people may not want to report a crime for fear of being charged
themselves, others may not want to turn in a friend or family member, some may
not report a crime out of fear, or there may be some other factor
involved. A really good question to ask
would be 'what is crime?". My
sociology book defines crime as "an act, or the omission of an act, that
is a violation of a federal, state, or local criminal law for which the state
can apply sanctions"(Mooney, Knox & Schacht, 2012). When one steps back to look at the big
picture, there is a lot that can be defined as crime! And depending on where you live, it may be
vastly different from another area. This
can create a lot of confusion, as well as a vague sense of what is right and
wrong.
After reading chapter 8, and learning about some of the
consequences of a lack of education, I realized how crime and education can
sometimes feed off of each other. I am
not by any means stating that they are directly causal, but there is often a
link between the two. Schools that do
not treat children with fairness, or do not give them a quality education often
times have many students who end up feeling hopeless and dropping out of
school. Children who attend schools that
are 'dropout factories' are often from lower socioeconomic communities. This can cause a feeling of being 'stuck',
and might lead to a 'crime pays' mentality.
Again, I know that this is not the case in all situations, but I do
believe that it should be thought about further.
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